Guard Your Heart

"Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." ~Proverbs 4:23

I always took this verse to mean to guard your heart against the evil in the world. While that is a big part of it, I've been discovering lately that your heart needs guarding from so much more.

Emotions. Yearnings. Weaknesses.

I'm learning to protect my heart against these things the hard way.

Sometimes your feelings can run away from you {read: me.}. You pray hard about it. And God's answer is "Not yet." What's left to do? Nothing. You have to completely submit. If you had guarded your heart, you wouldn't be in turmoil.

Having a desire for something is one of the strongest holds that can grab you. If the timing isn't right for that desire, your emotions are going to be all out of whack.

If your heart is open to things that make you weak, guess what? You're going to stumble -- often.

Things that need to stay out of your heart aren't always "evil". But they can be destructive. Learn what you need to protect your heart against and start building a defense.

Rebekah

<3

Parker & Auntie Bee

This, my dear friends, is my precious nephew -- Parker.

Parker is my sister and brother-in-law's first child. He was born on January 9 of this year and let me tell you, he has been a huge blessing in my family's and my life. His due date was originally February 5. If you've been following with our story, my Grammy passed away on February 5, 2011. We were so overjoyed to have such a joyous occasion on what once was a bleak day. But God had greater plans and wanted us to have Parker an extra month. Thanks, God! It turns out that my Grandpa passed away on February 6 of this year about 1 in the morning. If Parker had come on his original date, we would've had to choose whether to hold Grandpa's hand and watch his life end or hold Parker and celebrate new life. God was gracious enough to take that choice away from us. He never left our side.

Karlie, Greg, and Parker on his "birth" day.

Since Parker was a month early, he was considered a preemie. He was just at 5 lbs -- which cracked everybody up. Big babies run on each side of the family -- as well as big men! All the boys in each family were at least 10 lbs and are now over 6 feet tall! So to have a tiny preemie was a shock to us all. At first, he had breathing issues as many preemies do, and my sister didn't get to hold or see him until almost 12 hours after giving birth. That was so hard on her. But she's strong and she's a fighter.

My sister, my mom and I always make this face. You can see us written all over that face!

I happen to have the best job on earth. I'm lucky enough to be Parker's nanny twice a week. Boy, do we have fun together. Sometimes it can be frustrating because he is a newborn and I am just 16. But we get through those days and end up having fun. Lately I've noticed that he lights up when he sees me. And that is one of the best feelings in the world -- seriously.

I'm beyond blessed to have him in my life. And I'm blessed to have the opportunity to invest in his life and pour love into him. I hope that I can teach him something. I hope he can learn from my mistakes when he's older. I hope I can tell him about Jesus and His love for Parker too. I hope he doesn't forget me when I go off to college.

But I do have a game plan for when that happens. Skype dates, letters, packages, gifts, and all sorts of stuff from Auntie Bee.

Oh, yeah. I hope he can call me Auntie Bee one day. {My mom wants to be called Gigi and my Dad loves the name Papa Bear} I love the name Auntie and I figured Bee would be much more simple than Rebekah or even Beka. But I know I will love whatever comes out of his mouth when he finally talks to me. I can't wait for that day either.

Bottom line, I love this kid. And I love to spoil him. And I love that I can spoil him. Being a teenage aunt is the best.

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." ~James 1:17

Lots of love from Auntie Bee and Parker!

<3

Not Again, Robin!

Try and tell me this is not hilarious.

You failed.

It's hilarious.

My mom is notorious for checking us in on Facebook. She found this online and then posted it to her own Facebook to poke fun at herself. She's such a good sport.

Hope this gave you a giggle!

Happy Monday!

Rebekah

<3